The invention relates to a vertical electric machine such as a hydraulic generator or the like wherein the radial guide bearings for the rotor are disposed in support spiders which are arranged above and/or below the machine and are fastened in turn in the concrete wall surrounding the machine or in the concrete foundation by means of metal elements set therein.
Such hydraulic generators have a vertical shaft and an upper support spider wherein the guide bearing is arranged. It is known to connect the support spider with the concrete wall surrounding the machine in order to achieve quieter running. For this purpose, the arms are extended up to the concrete wall and bolted there rigidly to a metal element such as a base plate set in the concrete wall. This known arrangement has the advantage that the stiffness of the support spider with respect to flexural resonance frequencies is determined by the stiffness of the arms which are stressed in compression in the longitudinal direction. However, there results the disadvantage that very large compression forces occur in the event of thermal expansion of the arms of the support spider; these forces act in the radial direction and are transmitted to the concrete wall. The concrete wall, however, is often not capable of taking up large radial forces, particularly, if the support spider is arranged above the machine.
Accordingly, it is an object of the invention to provide a support arrangement for an electric machine of the above-mentioned type wherein the arms of the support spider for the radial guide bearings are supported in the concrete wall surrounding the machine in such a manner that the forces produced by the thermal expansion of the support spider can be taken up without difficulty and without affecting the quiet running of the machine.